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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24685051">Spin Cycles</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jan3693/pseuds/JanuaryGrey'>JanuaryGrey (Jan3693)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Muggle, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Misunderstandings, No Actual Cheating</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 07:41:05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,335</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24685051</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jan3693/pseuds/JanuaryGrey</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Remus's new upstairs neighbors, James and Sirius, have a very noisy, and very impressive sex life. Why then, is Sirius flirting with Remus?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Sirius Black/Remus Lupin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>421</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Spin Cycles</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This fic is based on the post below<br/></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Remus met his new upstairs neighbors when he saved a cardboard box marked <strong>PLATES</strong> from smashing to the lobby floor. In a feat of speed and dexterity he could never hope to repeat if he tried, Remus saw the box of dishes stacked on top of two other boxes wobble and start to tumble out of grasp of a pair of toned and tattooed arms, lunged forward, and caught the box halfway to the floor. </p>
<p>The plates rattled unhappily within, but nothing sounded broken.</p>
<p>“Oh fuck—good catch, mate!” A posh accented voice said brightly. </p>
<p>“No problem,” Remus said, shifting the box into a more secure hold as he straightened up. Without the box of plate hiding him, Remus he could see the man’s face now, grinning over the top of the other two boxes he was still carrying. </p>
<p>Handsome. Dear lord, he was handsome—deep grey eyes, black hair pulled up into a messy bun, and a smile that could charm the pants right off…well, Remus, for example.</p>
<p>“Sirius Black, 508,” the handsome man said. It took Remus a moment to realize that was his name and flat number. “I’d shake your hand, but then we’d just end up back where we started,” Sirius said, shrugging so the contents of the other boxes marked <strong>MUGS </strong>and<strong> BOWLS</strong> clattered a bit.</p>
<p>“No worries, I’m Remus Lupin, 408,” he replied. Silently, he was calculating chances and hopes that his new neighbor was somehow, miraculously, both single and not straight. </p>
<p>“Oh! You’re right below us then!” Sirius said happily. “I promise I’m a quiet walker, so you won’t hear me stomping around, I can’t say the same for James though.”<br/><em><br/>James</em>.</p>
<p>“Speak of the devil—James, come meet Remus! He lives below us and is going to hate your lead feet. Also, he saved your mum’s plates.”</p>
<p>Remus followed the direction of Sirius’s nod toward the lift doors, which had just opened to reveal a tall, dark-skinned man with glasses who was nearly as handsome as Sirius. Well, Remus thought morosely as he plastered his smile in place, he’d been half right. Sirius, it seemed, was not straight, but neither was he single.</p>
<p>“Christ, Sirius! I told you not to try carrying all three boxes at once,” James said, scolding and laughing affectionately at the same time. He hurried across the lobby and took the box of plates from Remus with a friendly smile. </p>
<p>“Nice to meet you, Remus, and don’t believe a thing this one says. I’m as light on my feet as a ballerina, he’s the one always dropping things, as you’ve already witnessed.”</p>
<p>Sirius stuck his tongue out at James, and despite his disappointment, Remus laughed. He might not be getting a potential boyfriend or hookup out of this, but maybe two new friends weren’t out of the question.</p>
<p>“Do you need any help with boxes?” Remus offered, but James shook his head.</p>
<p>“Thanks, but this is the last of it,” James said, “but, if you could call the lift that’d be great.”</p>
<p>Remus did as requested, pressing the buttons for both of their floors as James and Sirius both joined him. “Everything’s a mess right now,” Sirius said as the lift started upward, “but we’re going to have a housewarming party soon. You’ll have to come!” </p>
<p>“Yeah, I’d like that,” Remus said. The doors dinged and opened and he stepped out, glancing back to wave as the doors closed, only to see Sirius give him what seemed like a very flirtatious wink.</p>
<p>“Must be my imagination,” Remus muttered to himself as he walked toward his flat.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Remus did not notice the sound of James’s supposed lead feet or Sirius dropping things that afternoon or evening, or the next morning, which was good. He knew from past experience that the walls and floors in their building were not very thick. Since he was an introvert who worked remotely, Remus was home more often than he was out, and he’d overheard more than his fair share of fights, screaming babies, and bad pop music echoing through to his flat. The worst had been when they’d done some renovation work on the flats upstairs. </p>
<p>Overall, James and Sirius seemed like they were both going to be good neighbors though, both friendly and courteous. </p>
<p>Over the next few days, Remus bumped into both of his new neighbors several times, always striking up at least a brief conversation. They mostly stuck to small talk, but Remus got on well with both of them and could feel a real friendship starting to form. </p>
<p>There were a few times when he thought Sirius’s tone or gaze veered from friendly to flirtatious, which worried Remus a bit at first. It was flattering, of course, because Sirius was clever and handsome and definitely Remus’s type, save for the fact that Sirius was also in a relationship. Sirius often made his flirtatious remarks right in front of James though, and James never seemed fussed by it, so Remus began to think that maybe that maybe Sirius was just naturally a bit of a flirt.</p>
<p>Besides, there was absolutely no question that James and Sirius were together. Very, <em>very</em> together.</p>
<p>It happened for the first time early in the evening, though Remus was already in bed. He liked to go running in the mornings before the city got too congested, so he usually followed the old adage of “early to bed and early to rise.” He was just beginning to drift off to sleep when the thumping began right above his bed.</p>
<p>Remus knew instantly what he was hearing and feeling through vibrations in the wall. Remus’s old upstairs neighbors had been a middle-aged husband and wife who hadn’t engaged in <em>relations</em> too often, but every once in a while, Remus had been woken up by the thumping of a bedframe against the upstairs wall and moans of pleasure.</p>
<p>There were no moans from Sirius or James, but it must have been stunningly great sex. The pounding against Remus’s ceiling was hard and fast and rhythmic, and they just kept going! </p>
<p>During their lift and lobby conversations, Remus had learned that James was an active rugby player and that Sirius was very into yoga, so he’d known they were both fit as hell, but this was something else. He was half in awe and half jealous of the stamina and expertise it would take to achieve what was happening above him. James and Sirius managed to keep up that same intense tempo for almost half an hour before everything fell silent.</p>
<p>Two days later it happened again. Just about the same time in the evening, right after Remus had shut the blinds and crawled into bed, that same deep, rhythmic pounding began, echoing through the walls and ceiling around Remus. He was probably going to have to have a talk with James and Sirius if this was going to be a regular thing. God, that was going to be embarrassing. </p>
<p>Remus yanked his comforter up over his head, closed his eyes, and tried not to think too hard about the stunningly vigorous sex happening right above him, or how he really wished he was the one having it.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Remus encountered James and Sirius both together and separately a few times over the next week, but he never quite mustered the courage to say anything about the noise they occasionally made in their bedroom. They always crossed paths in the hallways or the lift, too public of places to talk about something so private. Remus supposed he could have just gone one floor, knocked on their door and let them know he could hear everything every time they had sex, but the thought of being so forward made him cringe. Besides, he didn’t want to make things awkward or risk his chance at making friends with the two. </p>
<p>So, he kept his silence and endured when, every few days, his upstairs neighbors had fantastic sounding sex.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The fifth time it happened, Remus was half-asleep. He recognized the sound, his drowsy mind making the connections. At the same time, his hand slid down beneath the elastic waistband of his pajama bottoms. Remus felt a small stab of guilt as he stroked himself. It was rather perverted to get off to the sound of his neighbors having sex, but it had been almost six months since Remus had broken up with his last boyfriend and even before that his sex life had been nothing compared to what happened regularly between James and Sirius. </p>
<p>Whatever shame Remus felt quickly died away as he stroked himself faster and faster, trying to match that tireless pounding overhead.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Sirius was definitely flirting with him, and Remus would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it. If pressed, he might even admit to flirting back a little, perhaps to even developing a bit of a crush on his upstairs neighbor. It was all harmless though, or so Remus told himself, just and idle bit of fun. </p>
<p>James and Sirius had been living above Remus’s flat for almost three weeks at that point, and Remus had gotten off to the sound of them having sex four times. He’d also gotten close enough to both of them that their conversations were getting deeper and more substantive. They were quickly becoming real friends, Remus felt.</p>
<p>Then, Sirius had to go and ruin it all.</p>
<p>“Do you want to go out sometime?” Sirius asked. He and Remus had been chatting in the lobby for almost fifteen minutes at that point, laughing and getting along great, then Sirius’s cheeks had flushed and he’d bitten his lip before asking Remus that very loaded question.</p>
<p>Remus froze. What was that supposed to mean? </p>
<p>Everything from Sirius’s phrasing to his tone to the slight flush on his cheeks and the nervous excitement in his eyes implied he was asking Remus out on a date. That, however, absolutely could not be possible though. Remus must be reading the situation wrong or inserting some of his own more fanciful desires into Sirius’s question. Suddenly, he felt very guilty about flirting back with Sirius and the little crush he’d been nursing. </p>
<p>Shocked as he was, he still tried to give Sirius the benefit of the doubt. “With you and <em>James</em>?” Remus asked pointedly.</p>
<p>Sirius’s face fell a bit, but he seemed to gather himself enough to clarify, “Er, just you and me…I was hoping.”</p>
<p>“Like a date?” Remus asked, well aware that there was ice creeping into his voice. Sirius could sense it to. He looked disappointed and embarrassed, like he already knew what Remus’s ultimate answer would be, but he was nothing if not bold and answered anyway.</p>
<p>“Er, yeah…like a date,” Sirius said, shuffling anxiously on his feet. Maybe he and James were poly or non-monogamous, but neither of them had mentioned it, not even now. That set off all the alarm bells in Remus’s head. </p>
<p>“No,” Remus said icily. “I don’t think so.” Before Sirius could say anything in reply, Remus brushed past him, opting for the stairs rather than waiting for the lift.</p>
<p>* </p>
<p>That evening, Remus listened as James and Sirius had sex again. At least, he hoped it was James upstairs with Sirius. </p>
<p>Poor James. He was such a nice guy, always polite and helpful to the other tenants of their building, and he volunteered his time coaching youth rugby teams. Sirius had seemed like a good person too, but clearly Remus had misjudged him.</p>
<p>Remus felt a deep, gnawing shame. He’d flirted with Sirius knowing he had a boyfriend. He’d indulged in his little crush and even wanked to the sound of Sirius and James having sex while fantasizing about Sirius. How could he have been so selfish? Remus knew from experience how awful it was to have a partner cheat on him, how much that betrayal hurt. James didn’t deserve that.</p>
<p>The question now was, what should Remus do about it? Would James believe him if Remus walked up and said “your boyfriend asked me out on a date.” They still didn’t know each other very well, Sirius could easily deny it and then who would James side with: the stranger who lived below him or the partner he loved enough to live with?</p>
<p>Remus did not sleep well that night, even after the thumping upstairs stopped.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Remus still hadn’t figured out what to say to James, or if he should say anything at all by the next day. He was just coming back from his run when he encountered both James and Sirius coming out of the lift. James had a sack of freshly laundered rugby jerseys slung over his shoulder in a mesh bag and Sirius was carrying his yoga mat. </p>
<p>James greeted Remus with an enthusiastic grin and “Good morning!” but Sirius looked away, avoiding Remus’s gaze and mumbling a barely audible greeting. James didn’t seem to notice that things were awkward and chilly between Remus and Sirius. He was chipper and practically bouncing on the balls of his feet.</p>
<p>“Tonight’s the night, Remus! Flat-warming party at ours, seven o’clock sharp! Don’t worry about bringing anything, just show up!” He was gone before Remus could make an excuse, dragging Sirius out the door with him.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Remus spent most of the day worrying about the party that evening. Should he go or not? Just twenty-four hours earlier he would have been excited to spend more time with his new neighbors and meet some of their friends. Now he wasn’t sure he could stand to be around James and Sirius without feeling pity for the former and disgust for the latter.</p>
<p>He could easily come up with an excuse, feign a sudden illness or urgent appointment, but Remus wasn’t a good liar, and, unless he was actually going to work up the courage to say something to James, he was going to have to keep seeing the pair around. Maybe the best thing he could do was go upstairs, join the party, and watch to see if he could catch Sirius flirting with anyone else. Maybe if he had something more than just his word on the matter, James would be more likely to believe him. </p>
<p>It was just a few minutes before six-thirty that evening and Remus was rummaging through his closet trying to decide what to wear when that familiar thumping began. “Really?” Remus muttered as he grabbed the closest shirt and pulled it on, hurrying out of the bedroom to seek solace in the far corner of his small living room. Unless they hurried it up for once, James and Sirius were barely going to have time to get dressed before their guests started arriving.</p>
<p>Feeling peevish, Remus followed James’s instructions and went upstairs at seven o’clock sharp, even if that barely gave his neighbors five minutes to put themselves back together after the bed stopped thumping against the wall. Despite that, James opened the door just a moment after Remus knocked, fully dressed and not at all smelling of sex. His hair was a mess, but that seemed to be its natural state. </p>
<p>“Hey, you made it!” James said, grinning. “Come on in!”</p>
<p>Remus stepped inside the flat and stopped with a confused frown. He’d expected a perfect copy of his own flat just one floor up. That was how it had been before; that was how all the flats in the building had been. He’d known there had been some renovations to some of the flats on the upper storeys, but he’d thought they’d just been some minor upgrades and changes. However, the flat Sirius and James inhabited was radically different from Remus’s own.</p>
<p>As he followed James down the hall, Remus turned to stare at the spot where, in his flat, the bedroom was located. Instead, the living room flowed directly into an open kitchen. </p>
<p>“Make yourself at home, there’s beer in the fridge or some vodka and mixers if you prefer,” James said, but Remus barely heard him. </p>
<p>He was panicking, he was definitely panicking. If James and Sirius’s bedroom wasn’t above Remus’s own bedroom then what the hell was all that banging and thumping? What the hell was the noise he been wanking to?</p>
<p>“Oh—just a second,” James said, interrupting his own running commentary. He hurried ahead of Remus, ducking into the kitchen. “Babe, your clothes are done!” James shouted as he pulled open the door of a washing machine.</p>
<p>Oh good lord, Remus wanted to die. He wanted to sink straight through the floor and drop back into the safety of his own flat. A washing machine. A bloody washing machine. <em>That</em> was what he’d been hearing. That was what he’d been wanking to.</p>
<p>Sirius came out of a room that must be the bedroom, followed closely by a lovely red-headed woman. Sirius saw Remus and hesitated, but the woman continued on into the kitchen. “Thanks, love,” she said, giving James a quick peck on the cheek before turning her attention to Remus with a smile, who was probably staring at her like an idiot while everything he thought he knew about James imploded.</p>
<p>“Lils, this is Remus, our downstairs neighbor,” James said, “and Remus, this is my girlfriend, Lily.”</p>
<p>Remus managed to pull himself together enough to shake Lily’s hand and say hello.</p>
<p>“Sorry about the laundry,” Lily said, messing with the settings on the machine to dry her clothes. “My flat doesn’t have a machine so I’m taking advantage of James and Sirius’s while I’m here. I hope it doesn’t create too much of a racket downstairs.”</p>
<p>“Oh hell! I know it’s noisy but hadn’t even thought of that!” James said. “Can you hear us doing laundry downstairs, Remus?”</p>
<p>“A little…” Remus answered timidly. James mistook his mortification for politeness though and promised to be more careful when they washed their clothes. Remus could only nod. Thankfully, someone else knocked at the door, drawing both James and Lily away on host duties. Remus let out a long, shaky breath and looked over at the washing machine that had caused him to lose sleep, among other things.</p>
<p>A bottle of beer suddenly appeared in front of his face, held out like an offering by a hesitant Sirius. “Peace offering?” He asked. Remus grabbed the bottle and took a long swig, insanely grateful to this man he’d misjudged horribly.</p>
<p>Sirius took Remus’s acceptance of the beer as a good sign, smiling, though he still seemed nervous. Remus owed him one hell of an apology for the cold, downright bitchy reply he’d given when Sirius had asked him out.</p>
<p>Instead, Sirius was the one who apologized. “Look,” he said, “I’m sorry about the other day. I clearly misjudged things and—”</p>
<p>“No!” Remus interjected. “You have nothing to be sorry for. You didn’t do anything wrong and…and you didn’t misjudge anything; <em>I </em>did.” </p>
<p>Sirius cocked his head to the side, confused but hopeful. </p>
<p>“If the offer still stands after I made an arse out of myself, I really would like to go out with you,” Remus said. He probably had no right to ask and he wouldn’t blame Sirius at all if he said no.</p>
<p>To his surprise, Sirius smiled. “Like a date?” Sirius asked, teasing Remus with his own words, though with an amused sort of mischief rather than disbelief or disgust.</p>
<p>“Yeah, like a date,” Remus replied, hesitantly smiling himself. Maybe he hadn’t entirely cocked up his chances with Sirius.</p>
<p>Sirius’s grin made Remus’s heart skip a beat as he said, “Yeah, I’d like that.”</p>
<p>Other people were filtering into the flat now, the party truly beginning. Someone called Sirius’s name and he waved in reply but stayed with Remus in the kitchen.</p>
<p>“If I can ask,” Sirius said, “what do you think you misjudged?”</p>
<p>Remus glanced down at the washing machine and took another deep drink before gesturing to his almost empty bottle. “I’m going to need about four or five more of these, then I might tell you.”</p>
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